ZEROOOOOO

Zero is one of my all-time favorite fictional characters, and at one point he was the favorite, not only that but I always wanted to play as him in X1, however the previous hacks that attempted to do this couldn't always get everything right, one not being able to implement Zero's hair and another using his X3 design even though Zero's not supposed to look like that yet, just a few examples so I'm happy to say that this hack finally perfects the Zero in X1 formula!

not only does Zero have his hair but his sprites actually match his X1 design (LET'S GOOOOO) and on top of that his Lv. 2 Z-Buster color is blue just like the one he shoots at Vile, while having a nice switcheroo with a green Lv. 3 Charge Shot. all the instances of X's UI have been properly replaced too: a Z on the health bar, Zero appearing in the opening and stage clear, the 1UP heads that look like Zero, also the silhouette during the ending cutscene is a nice touch, makes me wish the actual game did that. not only does all his sprites look natural, but so is all the new dialogue for this hack. not only is X still X but I appreciate that the Dr. Wily hologram doesn't go "haha I'm....LE EVIL!!!!" but instead is portrayed as a mysterious ally that might have more importance then you think. the new post-credits dialogue is also nice and might I say a better sequel hook than what the actual X1 does. gameplay wise Zero shoots a little higher and he can also jump higher, as well as deal more damage compared to X. Zero does use up more weapon ammo then X does but the Special Weapons in X1 are so good that it shouldn't matter too much. some of the bosses were also changed up a bit, for example Flame Mammoth's attacks have less breathing room, Armored Armadillo's rolling is much faster, and Chill Penguin's slide....slides more, props to making Chill Penguin more challenging.

unfortunately there's something about the hack I'm really mixed on, and that's the dopplegangers some Mavericks have during the Sigma Fortress stages. you see I'm a weird guy, I'm the type of person that plays X1 by collecting all the Armor Parts but skipping the other collectibles, as well as restricting myself to the Buster during the boss battles. the Storm Eagle doppleganger fight was surprisingly fun with the Buster, unfortunately I can't say the same about the other ones, especially Sting Chameleon that one was a bit of a pain especially with his invisibility mechanic affecting both of them at the same time. I was also surprised that Velguarder has one as well, isn't he supposed to be the warm-up before Sigma? I appreciate the Lv. 4 Charge Shot doing more than one damage to Wolf Sigma to compensate but now it deals too much damage to the point where it can kill him in just three shots, making the double doggys more difficult to deal with then the actual final boss. I'm kinda mixed on this mechanic in general like what is this, X Challenge? forgive me if this came across as rude, I just feel the dopplegangers a little unnecessary. outside of that the only other negatives are just personal nitpicks of mine (why is there a random Hoganmer at the beginning of the intro stage, why isn't X's theme Central Highway so the song doesn't go unused, why won't Zero be my friend), but I'm nowhere near a programmer so I understand that a hack like this requires a ton of work and time, I respect the craft.

for me I'd rate this hack four stars, but I don't want to ruin the 5.0 Avg. Rating it currently has so I'll just leave my rating blank. if you're itching to properly play as Zero in Mega Man X1, this hack is a must. shoutouts to CF for making this as well as Falchion22 and Programmer Peru for laying the groundwork. it'd be cool to see a future update but if we don't then it's all cool, would highly recommend playing